Spring Particle dab types

To choose a brush that uses Spring Particle dab types
To customize a Spring Particle brush variant

Brushes that use Spring Particle dab types consist of a net of particles held together by elastic springs. Since the particles are connected to each other, they don’t spread out across the canvas but bounce back toward the center of the brushstroke. The brushstroke mark is determined by the individual paths of the particles and the flexibility of the springs between them.

Spring Particle brushstrokes

Spring Particle brush controls

You can customize brushes that use Spring Particle dab types by using the Spring Particles control panel, which includes the Appearance, Stiffness, Stiffness Jitter, Length Jitter, and Minimum Length controls.

The Appearance controls let you choose a Nucleus, Chain, or Geometric appearance for the particle pattern.

• Nucleus — Particles spring outward from the brush path.
• Chain — A chain of particles whips around the brush path.
• Geometric — Particles form a geometric shape around the brush path.

A brushstroke with Appearance set to Nucleus

A brushstroke with Appearance set to Chain

A brushstroke with Appearance set to Geometric

The Random Length slider randomly varies the length of individual springs. Once adjusted, the lengths remain constant during the brushstroke.

Low random length (left) and high random length (right)

A brushstroke with low random length (left) and high random length (right)

The Stiffness slider controls the strength of the springs. Low values produce more relaxed springs, which allows the particles to move more freely in relation to each other. You can also associate the stiffness with an expression by choosing an option from the Expression list box. The Stiffness Jitter slider randomly varies the strength of individual springs.

Low stiffness (left) and high stiffness (right)

A brushstroke with low stiffness (left) and high stiffness (right)

You can also link stiffness to audio input from your microphone, or internal audio such as streaming music. For more information, see Audio Expression.

Using Audio Expression to vary stiffness

The Minimum Length slider sets the initial length of the springs. Low values allow springs to stretch more.

Low minimum length (left) and high minimum length (right)

A brushstroke with low minimum length (left) and high minimum length (right)

To choose a brush that uses Spring Particle dab types

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1 In the toolbox, click the Brush tool .
2 Click Window Search and type spring particles in the Search text box.
3 Choose a brush variant from the list.

To customize a Spring Particle brush variant

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1 Choose Window Brush Control Panels Brush Shape Spring Particles.
2 Adjust any of the settings in the Spring Particles panel.
3 Choose Window Brush Control Panels Brush Shape Particles - Common.
4 Adjust any of the settings in the Particles - Common panel.
For more information see Common Particle brush controls.

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While painting with a brush that uses Spring Particle dab types, you can quickly access brush controls by clicking the Spring Particles flyout button on the property bar.

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